What Do You See?

Recently I came across the story of young boy from New Zealand who has a bucket list.  Ever since the

movie “Bucket List” hit the silver screen in 2007, it seems that everyone has some kind of bucket list they want to work through before they enter the Pearly Gates. What caught my attention was that this twelve-year-old boy was not dying, but was going blind.

His family is now embarking on an international sightseeing tour. The boy’s mother said, “This year we’re going to try and fill his world with as many beautiful images as we can.” They call it building a visual memory bank.

Their plans made me pause for a moment and ask myself what is in my visual memory bank. There are many private and personal images that are holy and sacred, like standing in the delivery room beside Corrine as each of our two children were born- a breath taking experience. I can also see my father lying in his hospital bed and me bending down to kiss him for the last time. I can see Corrine and I standing in awe at Acadia National Forest in Maine, where the ocean kisses the mountain. I remember that a tear came to my eye when I first saw Michelangelo’s statue of David in Florence, Italy.

It is not every day that you get to see a child born, watch a loved one die, stand on a mountain, or travel to Italy; and that’s just the point. There are amazing and spectacular sights all around me all the time, if I only take the moment and open my eyes to see them. I need to notice simple and beautiful sights, like the smile on a friend’s face or the twinkle in someone’s eye. I need to take time to notice daffodils, cherry blossoms, and camellias as they start donning their new spring clothes.

There is so much for me to see. Yet, I sometimes feel like I am blind to the beauty that is all around me.  I wonder, does that ever happen to you? Are you taking notice of the wonderful images that fill your lives? Every day we have the delight of waking up to new beautiful sight. Remember that hymn, “Morning Has Broken”? It ends with the words, “Praise with elation, Praise every morning, God’s re-creation, of the new day.” Let’s keep our visual memory banks fresh and full with the wonders of each new day.